Exploring the Evidence Pyramid Janet G Schnall, MS, AHIP University of Washington Health Sciences Library Seattle, WA 98195 schnall@uw.edu
Objectives Describe the levels of evidence in the Evidence Pyramid, a hierarchy of research evidence Identify web resources to use for nursing research and evidence-based practice to improve patient care Locate resources on HEALWA, the health evidence website for WA state nurses and other professional groups Identify a method of managing research with a citation manager
Exploring the Evidence Pyramid List of eresources
What is evidence-based practice? Evidence based medicine is the conscientious, explicit, and judicious use of current best evidence in making decisions about the care of individual patients. The practice of evidence based medicine means integrating individual clinical expertise with the best available external clinical evidence from systematic research. Sackett DL et al. Evidence based medicine: what it is and what it isn't. BMJ 1996 Jan 13; 312 (7023): 71-2.
Evidence-Based Practice
Steps for EBN Practice 0. Cultivate a spirit of inquiry. 1. Convert your information into an answerable question (PICO) 2. Search the literature for the best available evidence 3. Critically appraise the evidence for validity and usefulness 4. Apply the findings to your clinical practice along with clinical expertise and patient s perspective to plan care 5. Evaluate the outcomes of your practice decisions or changes based on evidence 6. Disseminate EBP results Melnyk BM, Fineout-Overholt E, Stillwell SB, Williamson KM. Evidence-based practice: step by step: the seven steps of evidence-based practice. Am J Nurs 2010 Jan;110(1):51-3
What makes good evidence? Good Shoddy Based on scientific research RCT Systematic review Meta-analysis Clinical guidelines Opinion Consensus Because it s been done this way for 100 years
What is an Evidence Pyramid? Guideline to the hierarchy of evidence available. Guide for finding the best evidence quickly and efficiently. Each level of the pyramid draws on research evidence from the lower layers. Best to begin searching for evidence at the top of the pyramid. More synthesized evidence is found at the higher levels. Fewer studies are available at the top of the pyramid. If you don t find the best level of evidence to answer the question, move down the pyramid to other types of studies.
Chocolate Decadence Pyramid See s Chocolates Slide adapted from Edward G. Miner Library, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
Lots of Evidence Pyramids!
6S Pyramid ex. DynaMed, Nursing Reference Center, NGC ex. Cochrane ex. MEDLINE/PubMed, CINAHL Background Information: ex.textbooks, UptoDate
Evidence Pyramid Metasearch Engine: TRIP, ACCESSSS Systematic Reviews, Meta-Analyses ex. Cochrane Evidence Summaries, Evidence Guidelines ex. DynaMed, NGC, Nursing Reference Center Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs), Cohort Studies, Qualitative Studies Background Information, Expert Opinion ex. PubMed/Medline, CINAHL ex.textbooks, UpToDate
#1 Question: Does bar coding reduce medication errors in hospitals?
#2 Clinical Question: What is the effect of wound cleansing solutions and wound cleansing techniques on the rate of healing of pressure ulcers? 14
Where to look for evidence-based information? Where to begin? By Pictofigo CC-BY-SA-3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Clarify your Question with PICO Patient, population or problem? Intervention? Comparison? Outcome? 16
PICO #1 P: medication errors in hospitals I: bar coding of medicines C: no bar codes O: reduction of medication errors
PICO #2 P: Pressure ulcers [for hospitalized patients] I: cleansing techniques C: comparing wound cleansing with no wound cleansing, or different wound cleansing solutions, or different cleansing techniques O: improved healing of pressure ulcers
Background Information: Textbooks UptoDate uptodate.com $MO Concise comprehensive up-to-date reviews of clinical topics in multiple specialties ebooks HEAL-WA ebooks
UpToDate Prevention of adverse drug events in hospitals m
ebooks on HEALWA healwa.org Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics, 2011 Harrison s Online Lippincott Manual of Nursing Practice Medical-Surgical Nursing Care
Search Databases Efficiently to Find Research Journal Articles PubMed/MEDLINE pubmed.gov HMO PubMed includes MEDLINE and citations to biomedical journal articles, 1940 s+ Indexes 5,200 biomedical journals CINAHL ebscohost.com/biomedical-libraries/the-cinahl-database $HMO Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature Indexes the literature of nursing, biomedicine, alternative/complementary medicine, consumer health and 17 allied health disciplines.
2 PubMed/MEDLINE Strategies for Finding Evidence-Based Citations 1. Use Filters: Article/Publication Types Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial Research Support, US Government Meta-Analysis Systematic Reviews Practice Guideline 2. Use Clinical Queries section of PubMed 2. Use Clinical Queries section
medication errors/pc [majr] AND (automatic data processing [mesh] OR "bar code" OR "bar codes" OR "bar coding" OR "bar coded") Enter search terms
medication errors/pc [majr] AND (automatic data processing [mesh] OR "bar code" OR "bar codes" OR "bar coding" OR "bar coded") Filters PubMed Strategy #1: Limit to desired Article Types, e.g., RCTs, Clinical Trial.
PubMed Abstract
Full text Article
MeSH: Medical Subject Headings Construct a Search using MeSH Headings MeSH=Medical Subject Headings They are assigned to all indexed articles in PubMed MeSH terms describe what the article is about They are key in constructing targeting searches.
PubMed Clinical Queries Strategy #2: Clinical Queries Link on Advanced Search or Home page
Minimizing human error in radiopharmaceutical preparation and administration via a bar code-enhanced nuclear pharmacy management system. Hakala JL, Hung JC, Mosman EA. J Nucl Med Technol. 2012 Sep; 40(3):183-6. Epub 2012 Jun 5.
Finding Qualitative Research Use appropriate Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms in your search, such as: Qualitative Research Focus Groups Interviews as Topic Nursing Methodology Research, and more
Search PubMed for Qualitative Research Qualitative research AND medication errors/pc AND (automatic data processing [mesh] OR "bar code OR "bar codes" OR "bar coding" OR "bar coded")
PubMed Basic Tips Try this Start with a keyword search Tell PubMed Enter keywords (and synonyms for these terms) you would expect to find in an article title or abstract [PubMed does not search the full text of articles.] Search by phrase ( ) Add quotations around words to tell PubMed to find an exact phrase Search for words in the title [ti] Use Limits Search by Author [au] PubMed to search for words in article titles [Do not use this for comprehensive searches.] Ex: pressure ulcer [ti] AND mattress[ti]. Limit your results by type of article, date range, age group, journal sets, and more. Search PubMed for a particular author Ex: Rivara FP[au] Find Related Citations In the abstract view, take a look at the related citations generated for a particular article (right hand side of page) 33
PubMed Tips (cont.) Try This Construct a search using MeSH terms MeSH terms are Medical Subject Headings and are assigned to all indexed articles in PubMed MeSH terms describe what the article is about and are a key in constructing targeted searches. Tell PubMed Once you ve identified an article that looks relevant, take a look at the article s MeSH terms. In the abstract view, click on the + next to Publication Types, MeSH terms. Click on a term to send it to the PubMed search box. You may combine terms, but you may receive better results by starting with two or three terms. You may add keywords to your search to narrow your results. 34
CINAHL: Search for Research Articles $HMO Provides coverage from 1982+ of nursing and 17 allied health disciplines literature 1700+ journals indexed Can easily search for Research articles
Limit your Results Randomized Controlled Trial
Link to full text CINAHL Results
Finding Qualitative Research in CINAHL Use appropriate CINAHL Subject Headings Qualitative Studies Focus Groups Interviews Grounded Theory Phenomenological Research, etc. Choose Qualitative under Clinical Queries Limits
CINAHL Basic Tips Try This Tell CINAHL Limit to Research Articles Check the Research Article box to show only research articles in your results Limit to Peer Reviewed Articles Exclude PubMed Results Limit to Evidence-Based Practice Find Similar Results Search by CINAHL Heading Check the Peer Reviewed box to show only results from peer reviewed journals in your results Check the Exclude MEDLINE Records box to show only results unique to CINAHL Check the Evidence-Based Practice box to retrieve articles from evidence-based practice journals View a citation of interest and click the title to see the Detailed Record. Click on Find Similar Results on the left side of the screen. Select a citation of interest and click the title to see the Detailed Display. Inspect the Major Subjects and Minor Subjects fields in the citation record. Click on an individual term to run a search on that subject heading or copy desired terms into individual search boxes to create a new search. 39
CINAHL vs. MEDLINE CINAHL Coverage: 1982+ Indexes 1700 journals Focuses on nursing and allied health literature CINAHL Thesaurus Has peer-reviewed limit Includes cited references at end of many refs MEDLINE Coverage: early 1940 s+ Indexes 5200 journals Focuses on biomedical literature Uses MeSH as its controlled vocabulary No peer-reviewed limit No cited references
Email Alerts What are email alert services? Deliver current citations/abstracts into your email Based on a search strategy you create May provide links to PubMed and full-text articles Why use email alerts? Keep abreast of new research in your field Receive automatic updates Examples: MyNCBI for PubMed, Alerts for EBSCO
celiac disease My NCBI My NCBI from PubMed celiac disease
Accessing full-text ejournals and other eresources Use full-text links in PubMed/MEDLINE and CINAHL Check with your hospital or library or clinic For UW Affiliates: use the Proxy service to access full-text ejournals from off-campus www.lib.washington.edu/help/connect.html Use HEAL-WA healwa.org
healwa.org DynaMed, VisualDx Nursing Reference Center Cochrane PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL EthnoMed, RHIN MedlinePlus, Patient Ed Reference Center LexiComp Natural Standard
HEAL-WA Journals A-Z 5,000+ full-text health-related journals
Search Practice Guideline Resources National Guideline Clearinghouse guideline.gov HMO Nursing Reference Center $HMO ebscohost.com/nursing/products/nursing-reference-center PubMed pubmed.gov HMO CINAHL $HMO
National Guideline Clearinghouse guideline.gov
Guideline Summary
National Guideline Clearinghouse Guideline Comparison
Searching CINAHL for Pressure ulcer cleansing Limit: Practice Guidelines Pressure ulcers AND cleans* Searching PubMed for Pressure ulcer cleansing Filter: Practice Guideline under Article Types
Search for Evidence Summaries DynaMed ebscohost.com/dynamed $HMO Evidence-based clinical resource providing summaries of 3500+ diseases and conditions Nursing Reference Center $HMO ebscohost.com/nursing/products/nursing-reference-center Includes Evidence-based Care Sheets and Quick Lessons Natural Standard naturalstandard.com $HMO Evidence-based information for complementary and alternative medicine
DynaMed $HMO Provides summaries of the best evidence for over 3,500 clinical topics Can quickly browse and find key recommendations Updated daily Monitors content of over 500 journals and systematic review databases M: Available on mobile devices
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DynaMed Level of evidence Level of evidence
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Levels and Grades of Evidence REPROLINE, Johns Hopkins University www.reproline.jhu.edu
Nursing Reference Center $HMO Evidence-based Care Sheets Evidence-based summaries on key topics incorporating the best available evidence through vigorous systematic surveillance Diseases & Conditions Quick Lessons Drug information Skills & Procedures Practice Guidelines Patient Education materials CE modules
pressure ulcers
Nursing Reference Center: Evidence-Based Care Sheet December 20, 2013
Nursing Reference Center: Quick Lesson November 9, 2012
Nursing Reference Center: Skill Competency Checklist
Nursing Reference Center: Patient Education September 1, 2013
Continuing Education Credit
Natural Standard naturalstandard.com $HMO Provides high-quality, evidence-based information about complementary and alternative medicine Includes dietary supplements and integrative therapies Grades reflect level of available scientific data + or - the use of therapy for a specific medical condition M: Available on mobile devices Merging with Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database in early 2014
Use a Meta-Search Engine to find evidence sites Trip tripdatabase.com HO Accessss Federated Search plus.mcmaster.ca/accessss/ O
Trip Database
Accessss Federated Search O http://plus.mcmaster.ca/accessss/ Searches simultaneously several evidence-based resources (online evidence-based texts, and preappraised journal publications) Follows 6s Pyramid of evidence-based decisionmaking Provides email alerts to new published evidence in user s area of interest
Search for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses Resources Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews $HMO PubMed/MEDLINE: Systematic Reviews HMO CINAHL $HMO
Systematic review vs. Meta-analysis Systematic review: a literature review of RCTs focused on a single question which tries to identify, appraise, select and synthesize all high quality research evidence relevant to that question. Uses explicit methods to identify, select and critically evaluate relevant research. Meta-analysis: a systematic review combining results of several studies using quantitative statistics.
Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
Cochrane Database Protocol
2013 Systematic Review Authors' conclusions We identified three small studies addressing cleansing of pressure ulcers. One reported a statistically significant improvement in pressure ulcer healing for wounds cleansed with saline spray containing Aloe vera, silver chloride and decyl glucoside (Vulnopur) compared with isotonic saline solution, a further study reported no statistically significant change in healing was seen when wounds were cleaned with water was compared with saline. A final study compared pulsatile lavage with sham and found a significantly greater reduction in ulcer volume at the end of the study period in the lavage group compared with the sham group. The authors conclude that there is no good trial evidence to support use of any particular wound cleansing solution or technique for pressure ulcers.
Finding Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses in CINAHL Use Publication Type Limits: Systematic Review Meta-Analysis Search Meta Analysis as a Subject Heading
Finding Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses in PubMed Use Article Types filters Systematic Reviews Meta-Analysis Use the Clinical Queries section: Systematic Reviews
Young J, Slebodnik M, Sands L. Bar code technology and medication administration error. J Patient Saf. 2010 Jun;6(2):115-20. doi: 10.1097/PTS.0b013e3181de35f7. Abstract Medication administration error (MAE) remains a patient safety concern. Few studies have investigated the impact of bar-coded technology on medication error reduction during the medication administration process at the bedside in acute care settings. The purpose and focus of this systematic review is to determine whether implementation of the Bar Code Medication Administration System (BCMA) is associated with declines in MAE rate. Findings from this systematic review reveal varied findings between studies and among the 5 rights of medication administration (right drug, right time, right patient, right dose, and right route) in general. Although BCMA did not consistently decrease the overall incidence of MAE, the technology did identify categories of medication errors not previously detected with the traditional 5 rights approach. The opportunity to analyze the additional categories of MAE identified by BCMA has implications for patient safety and is perhaps the most significant contribution of this review.
Manage your Research Use a citation manager: EndNote Basic (formerly EndNote Web)- free RefWorks -free to UW Zotero free Mandeley free EndNote desktop versions $
What is EndNote Basic? A web-based program that allows you to store, edit, and manage citations. Citations from many databases may be imported into your online account directly or from saved files of references. Works with Microsoft Word (requires free Cite While You Write plug-in) to allow automatic creation of in-text citations and bibliographies in many publishing styles. Allows online sharing of folders of citations for collaborative projects.
Evidence Pyramid Metasearch Engine: TRIP, ACCESSSS Systematic Reviews, Meta-Analyses ex. Cochrane Evidence Summaries, Evidence Guidelines ex. DynaMed, NGC, Nursing Reference Center Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs), Cohort Studies, Qualitative Studies Background Information, Expert Opinion ex. PubMed/Medline, CINAHL ex.textbooks, UpToDate
Closing Thoughts Refer to the handout Exploring the Evidence Pyramid Remember the Evidence Pyramid. Start at the top! Use Cochrane Database to find SRs. Use DynaMed, Nursing Reference Center, and Natural Standard to find summaries of evidence. Use CINAHL and PubMed to find research articles. To manage references, use EndNote Basic. Remember HEAL-WA for access to a wide selection of evidence-based eresources. 85
Exploring the Evidence Pyramid Handout: http://media.hsl.washington.edu/media/schnall/snrc2014handout.pdf PowerPoint: http://media.hsl.washington.edu/media/schnall/snrc2014pp.pdf Questions? Janet G Schnall, MS, AHIP University of Washington Health Sciences Library Seattle, WA 98195 schnall@uw.edu